Warm Cots
by Kurishii Mineaux
Summary: Eren, Armin, and love budding from the tradgedy that befalls Wall Maria and its inhabitants. fluff i guess, there will be yaoi later on. (you know, lemons and stuff) T for now, rating will change.
1. Chapter 1

Eren looked out over the many heads in the boat. The sunset was red at the horizon, spilling and fading up into the sky going through shades of orange as the sun sunk behind the ruined wall. He could see the steam, released from when titans are killed, rise above the roof-line of the shrinking city. _So the troops are still at it._ He thought, hoping that Hannes was alright.

He looked at his companions. Mikasa was dozing lightly, resting her cheek on his shoulder and breathing softly. Earlier, Armin had been trying to comfort and calm Eren down, but now he lay with his head pillowed by Eren's lap. Eren ran a dirty and scuffed hand softly through his friend's blond hair. Armin's grandfather hand seen what sort of state Mikasa and Eren were in and had decided that, for now, it was probably best for them to have cool headed Armin with them.

Eren continued stroking Armin's hair. It was hypnotic and he really didn't feel like talking with anyone (also the people he would talk to had literally fallen asleep on him) or thinking. He didn't want the fresh memories slicing through his mind, causing almost a searing pain in his chest. The boat ride was long, and Eren ended staying awake for the entire thing, only dozing lightly near the end out of exhaustion. He continued to run his finger through his friend's hair. There was a dull ache in his fingers and palms that he tried to ignore. Earlier he and Mikasa had pulled the splinters out of eachother's hands. Armin made a small noise in his sleep and nuzzled his face into Eren's pants. Eren continued petting his friend methodically.

It had been almost a week since Wall Maria had fallen. The government had said that they had abandoned it, but that was all careful wording so the panic was minimal. Everyone knew the truth though. Word had spread like wildfire that the titans had broken in. The area where the refugees had be shuffled into was over crowded and dreary. Often people could be heard crying for lost loved ones at night;children waking at night and calling for a lost parent, soft crying from pangs of hunger, the inconsolable sobs mourning over a lost lover or spouse. The worst part was that no one hand the heart to comfort or the energy to hush these sounds. And it only got worse after thousands were sent to their deaths in an attempt to solve the food shortage disguised as a stand against the titans to take Maria back.

"E-Eren?" Armin knelt in the dark, clutching his grandfather's hat to his chest. He softly touched Eren's shoulder with a trembling hand. Armin's face was puffy around his eyes from crying, but they were dry. No tears had been shed for hours. "Hey," Armin whispered helplessly as he gently shook his sleeping friend's arm "Eren!"

"Nmmm? Armin? What is it? Why aren't you in your cot?" Eren sat up, rubbing some of the sleep out of his eyes.

Armin fidgeted with the hat a little. "I- I don't want to be alone right now Eren... Please, can I sleep with you tonight?" He was trying to be as quiet as possible, but his trembling voice threatened to crack.

Eren pulled the blond into the cot and covered them both with his rough blanket. His arms wrapped around Armin's thin frame, holding the other boy close as he shook softly with tears. Once again, Eren found himself softly stroking Armin's hair. It was strait and soft, not like his own hair, which was more rough. Slowly, his tears puttered out and his breathing leveled as he drifted off to sleep. Eren pressed his lips gently to Armin's forehead, like his mother used to do for him and Mikasa when she would put them to bed. Then, he too allowed himself to succumb to the enticing world of sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Armin continued to share Eren's bed. For the first few weeks, Armin would sneak into his bed in the middle of the night, but then, after a word from Eren, they began to retire together. Soon, someone noticed Armin's bed being empty every night and it was given to someone else. Eren didn't mind, winter was fast approaching and the extra warmth was welcomed. Then they found out that they were to be sent to the land fill they were relieved that they'd finally have something productive to do. Eren had always been quick to anger and violence but after they'd arrived at the refugee camp, he had been more irritable.

Working in the fields gave them something to do and at the end of the day, everyone was exhausted. Most just wolfed down their supper and trudged away to bed. Eren, Mikasa, and Armin stayed at their table in amicable silence. Mikasa was still slowly eating, nibbling on the last of her bread. Armin yawned and stretched his arms. He was sore, but he could also tell that he was, slowly, gaining more muscle. Eren, noticing that Armin was getting sleepy, picked up his dishes and stood. He grabbed Armin's empty plate and took them back to the bin of dirty dishes. Armin stood, a little embarrassed.

_I can do things on my own you know…_ Armin though, pouting inwardly. He followed Eren to their bunks after bidding Mikasa goodnight.

"Are you sure it's alright that I sleep with you?" Armin asked this question nightly.

Eren looked at him, "Of course. By now it would probably be really difficult to sleep without you. Plus the extra warmth is great." Eren took off his work clothes, shaking some half-melted snow off of his cape.

Armin followed suit. Then both boys, stripped down to their undershirts, slipped under the wool blanket. Their bunk was narrow for one person, so they had no other choice than to be pressed up against each other. Eren had also grown a bit since they had left the refugee camp, making the bed seem even smaller.

Armin smiled softly, closing his eyes. Then he felt something warm press against his cheek. His eyes snapped open and he pushed his arms out, shoving himself and Eren apart. "W-what was that for?" he hissed, worried about being too loud.

"S-sorry Armin. I-I thought you were asleep already…." Eren blushed a little. He looked at Armin's wide blue eyes and felt a small pang of regret.

"Why'd you do that?" Armin whispered, trying to keep a blush from creeping upon his cheeks.

Eren thought for a moment, both their embarrassment growing. Slowly, Eren reached out to the blond and pulled him close.

"I-I don't have a good reason. You look really cute and peaceful when you're asleep." Eren murmured into Armin's ear. "A-and don't you kiss people you care about?" Eren could feel Armin's cheeks grow warmer and he knew that he was also blushing.


	3. Chapter 3

Sleep didn't come easily for Eren. Every little noise annoyed him. He was embarrassed, in his mind for no reason. Armin was sleeping restlessly, pressed up against his chest. His lips twitched in his sleep and Eren tried not to watch them. He felt strange. He loved Armin like a brother, not romantically. In fact, he couldn't recall a time when he loved anyone romantically. But Armin looked adorable. He shook his head; he needed to stop thinking like that and sleep. They had another hard day of mind numbing work in the frozen fields of the land fill.

Finally he drifted off to a soft sleep. His dream was pleasant and yet, it unnerved him a little. He dreamed of touches, gasps, soft, wanting moans, lips against lips, fingers gliding along flushed and heated skin. If asked, he wouldn't be able to recall of whom he was dreaming.

He woke with a start. The room was black and silent aside from the snores of others. It took a moment for his eyes to focus. Armin had waked him up.

"What's wrong Armin?" Eren asked, a little saddened that he was unable to finish that mesmerizing dream.

"You were moaning and thrashing." Armin murmured, purposely not mentioning that Eren's erect member was pressing against him. "You woke me. Were you having a nightmare again?"

"N-no. I'm fine, Armin." He couldn't believe that his dream, and a dream like that no less, had caused him to wake his bed-mate. "Just go back to sleep."

He knew in the back of his mind that he had an erection and he hoped that Armin didn't know that it was there. Eren wanted to roll over and put his back to Armin, but the cot they shared was too small for that.

"Eren…" Armin looked up at Eren's blushing face. "Let me help you with that."

They both were stunned with what had just come out of the blonde's mouth. Armin had no idea what possessed him to say something like that aloud and Eren was just plain shocked. Small, calloused hands slid down Eren's torso. They trembled slightly, terrified and embarrassed.

* * *

AN: In the next chapter the rating changes from T to M. Thank you all for reading


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